This invention relates generally to impulse pay-per-view (PPV) television systems and especially to such systems wherein a subscriber requests authorization to receive a particular scrambled PPV television program by placing a telephone call. The telephone call initiates a transaction that ultimately allows the subscriber terminal device (usually an addressable cable decoder) to unscramble a television signal at the desired time. In practice, a number of head end telephone numbers are used to identify various PPV programs, with the numbers being changed periodically so that at a particular time on a particular date a specific PPV program is identified with a specific telephone number.
The program selection mechanism uses automatic number identification (ANI) technology that is available within the telephone switching network. ANI equipment interfaces with the local network and may be provided by the local telephone company, a long distance carrier or an interexchange carrier. The ANI equipment may be installed at the local network switching office or may be "off site" if operated by a third party. The telephone number identifying the PPV program is referred to as the called number and the subscriber telephone number is referred to as the calling number. The ANI equipment intercepts the transaction-originating telephone call by recognizing the called number as other than a voice network number. (Interception by the ANI equipment results in the call being outside the voice network and not adding any load thereto.) The ANI equipment transforms the telephone call into a data packet containing the called number, the calling number nd a television system identifier. The data packet is transmitted over different communication links, i.e. a telephone modem, via satellite or other telephone networks, to either a system controller or to a management computer. A system controller is located at the cable head end and is used to address the individual home terminal identified with the calling number. A management computer is used to drive a system controller for other applications. For the purposes of this invention, it is immaterial whether the ANI data packet goes to a system controller or to a management computer.
Presently, a subscriber in such a system must actually dial the appropriate head end telephone number on a telephone. This transaction is colloquially referred to as "buying" or "purchasing" a program or event. There are two impediments associated with this: one is that the telephone number generally changes from event to event, making it difficult to remember the correct number; the other is that the telephone instrument may not be conveniently located for the subscriber. Such impediments are undesirable since they impede the subscriber from implementing the buy decision and detract from the impulse nature of the system.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a system to facilitate subscriber implementation of impulse purchase decisions of PPV television programs.
One solution of the invention provides the subscriber with an auto dialer system for automatically dialing the head end telephone number. Such an auto dialer system includes:
1. A handheld IR transmitter (may already be present if the subscriber has an addressable cable converter).
2. An IR receiver that responds to the IR signals from the transmitter.
3. A memory in which a portion of the head end telephone number digits (N) used for PPV are stored, in the form of NNN-XXXX with the number of N's and X's determined by the needs of the CATV system.
4. Digital and analog circuits to respond to the output of the IR receiver to provide a number of digits (X) to be appended to the numbers stored in the memory.
5. Circuitry to determine if the sequence is correct by testing for the number of digits, their timing, whether the telephone circuit is in use and for repetitively dialing the head end telephone number until the call is answered.
In this form, the auto dialer system is separate from the decoder and therefore useful with any CATV decoder. The area code and first group of digits of the CATV system's ANI telephone number block could be preprogrammed into the auto dialer (for example, with hidden DIP switches or in a PROM). An IR receiver is included in the auto dialer to receive the authorization (buy) request from the subscriber. To order a program, the subscriber enters a small number, two digits for example, which is added to the preprogrammed ANI phone number associated with the PPV program, and a single data entry (DE) command on his handheld IR transmitter. A microprocessor in the auto dialer system adds the digits entered to the end of the preprogrammed base ANI phone number and automatically makes the telephone call to complete the transaction.
In another form, the system of the invention is particularly useful with Zenith Electronics Corporation's PM cable system which has a serial output port and the ability to be downloaded with data from the cable head end. In this aspect of the invention, the microprocessor-based auto dialer is coupled to the PM serial port and ANI dialing performed after receipt of a very limited number of digits entered by the subscriber to indicate his impulse buy decision. Apart from a register for storing the telephone number during the dialing phase of operation, the auto dialer system need have no number memory. Optionally, partial numbers may be stored, as in the above system, and only the remainder of the digits (or a code indicating the digits) downloaded from the head end.
In practice, the auto dialer may be initialized by the head end by being downloaded with a number of ANI phone numbers (up to 100 in a two digit program tag system). In this instance, the phone numbers would be identified as 0-99 to correspond to the program tags applied by the head end to the particular program events. The program tag would be downloaded periodically by global pass commands from the head end to all subscribers and the subscriber would only need to push the single DE button on the remote control transmitter in order to buy the program to which he is tuned. The auto dialer would receive the IR signal from the PM decoder and recognize the event number, either because it is entered by the subscriber via the remote keyboard or because it corresponds to a program tag. The auto dialer then selects the telephone number to be dialed that corresponds to the event number in its previously downloaded memory. Thereafter, the auto dialer continues dialling until a connection is made to the head end telephone terminal.
Both of the above described systems require that the auto dialer and the decoder be positioned in proximity to a telephone jack. This may not always be possible since the decoder is generally located adjacent to the subscriber's television receiver and there may not be a nearby telephone jack. In accordance with a further aspect of the invention, a remote communications link is provided between the IR receiver/detector or the decoder output, as the case may be, and the auto dialer input to permit the auto dialer to be in a different portion of the household. In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the invention, a line carrier communication link is provided in which the common house circuit wiring is used to carry the signals from the output of the decoder or IR receiver/detector to the input of the auto dialer for executing the subscriber's purchase decision. The separate communication link may be RF or infrared also and is useful with both of the abovementioned versions of the invention.